Cambodian garment workers toiling to death

In a single week in July, over two hundred workers were admitted to the Prek Anhchanh Health Centre clinic on the outskirts of Phnom Penh after passing out at work in garment factories.  

However, more alarmingly, garment workers are actually dying at work.

Sokny Say from IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC) said:

"2014 is remarkable because while we have had many cases of mass faintings in the past, this is the first year that people have died. We must not become immune to the fact that so many garment workers are collapsing in the factories. It can be a precursor to death."

Two workers employed at factories located outside Phnom Penh died at the end of July.

Thirty-five-year-old seamstress Nov Pas, who spent nearly four years making clothes for brands like Gap and Old Navy, passed out at her post in the Sangwoo factory at 8a.m on July 24th, 2014. By 9am she had been admitted to the nearest provincial hospital, and around 6pm she was pronounced dead. 

When contacted for comment, Chea Sok Thong of the Korean-owned Sangwoo factory denied corporate responsibility for Ms. Nov’s death, claiming medical carelessness from the hospital where she was receiving treatment.

Garment worker, Vorn Tha, 44, collapsed and died at the New Archid factory, which makes clothes for H&M, after he had worked many long days from 7am to 10pm.

A third garment worker, employed at the Cambo Kotop Ltd factory in Phnom Penh, died in March.

IndustriALL’s general secretary, Jyrki Raina, stated:

“This sinister development of workers collapsing at work and then dying cannot go unchallenged. Poverty wages mean that garment workers cannot afford to eat properly and a lack of food, long hours and intolerable factory conditions are proving a lethal combination.

We continue to back Cambodian unions’ demands for a raise in the minimum wage so garment workers can afford enough food to live on and no longer have to work such punishing overtime hours to survive.”

Unions at Rio Tinto gear up for global day of action

Representatives from trade unions at Rio Tinto in Australia, Canada, France, Indonesia, South Africa, the UK and the US met at the convention in Las Vegas. They form part of the global network of unions at Rio Tinto, which earlier this year launched a global campaign against the company. They were joined at the meeting by union leadership from Germany and IndustriALL Global Union.

Participants discussed plans for their global day of action against Rio Tinto on 7 October, when IndustriALL affiliates around the world will take action to demand decent work as part of the STOP Precarious Work campaign.

The Rio Tinto Global Union Network chose 7 October to hold their global day of action because the billion-dollar company is increasingly introducing precarious forms of work at its operations around the globe.

For instance, the Steelworkers union at Rio Tinto subsidiary Kennecott in Utah, USA reported that Rio Tinto has adopted the practice of reducing the workforce through attrition and then replacing the retiring workers with contractors.

“Unions at Rio Tinto are coming together like never before to demand decent work. We will send that message loud and clear on 7 October,” stated IndustriALL Assistant General Secretary Kemal Ozkan.

The unions agreed at the meeting on the need for Rio Tinto to change its approach to unions and recognize them as a key stakeholder worthy of respect. Until that happens, “We want to poke them in the eye and kick them in the shins,” stated CFMEU Mining and Energy General Secretary Andrew Vickers, who is also the IndustriALL mining section Chairman.

Customers, students, NGOs and unions all demand that NXP “Bring Back the 24!”

In defending and maintaining its gross violation of human rights, NXP’s argument is that the 5 May sacking of the entire elected leadership of the NXPSCIWU union was justified because union members did not work on three public holidays in April 2014.

The claim that this failure to work on national public holidays amounted to an illegal strike and sackable offence is both immoral and wrong. The labour authorities of the Philippine government are brokering conciliation talks between the union and local management. However NXP remains intransigent against the reinstatement of the sacked 24, offering instead a payoff that was unanimously rejected by workers.

Watch this moving video overview of NXP’s violation in the Philippines and its effects on the sacked workers. During the interviews, the sacked workers explain that NXP’s vindictive mass sacking forced them to take their children out of school, as they can no longer afford it.

IndustriALL Global Union general secretary Jyrki Raina stated:

How can the executives of NXP and their customers such as Apple sleep at night knowing the facts of this case?

Apple’s iPhone 6 and many other everyday electrical items have important microchip technology built by this abusive employer NXP. It is the duty of those corporate customers to force the misbehaviour of NXP to stop, with an immediate first step being the reinstatement of the 24 sacked trade union representatives.

The union busting attack by NXP was launched in retaliation to the union’s bargaining unit, led by President Reden Alcantara, negotiating for a daily pay increase of US$1.39 and the regularization of 1,500 contract workers. The 8% pay increase sought by the union would be enough to buy a kilo of rice and a pack of dried fish.

As well as Apple, two other top NXP customers Ericsson and Nokia are looking into the situation at their supplier, following an alert by IndustriALL affiliates in Sweden and Finland.

On 6 August NXP workers marked the third month of their campaign to “Bring Back the 24” with a 1,000-strong march inside the special economic zone, LISP1, where NXP is located. Other trade unions and community supporters joined the workers’ caravan from capital Manila to Southern Tagalog. Large steel barricades designed to block the march were pushed out the way. When marching past the NXP facility, workers inside showed their support with raised fists from inside the windows.

Reacting to the constant firm support for the union by remaining NXP workers, management has now installed cameras throughout the inside of the plant, and instructed internal security guards to prevent workers from wearing “Reinstate the 24 Officers” t-shirts and from posting support messages on social media.

NXP’s management continues to escalate its violations of the rights of its employees and make a mockery of the corporate claims that: “NXP is a reputable company that respects the rights of its workers. We have always enjoyed a strong and mutually beneficial partnership with our local employees and look forward to reaching a fair agreement with them soon.”

Akzo Nobel Korea refuses to recognize IndustriALL affiliate KCTF

The Korean Chemical & Textiles Workers’ Federation (KCTF) organized 62 of the 115 employees at Akzo Nobel Korea, with the new local officially forming on 10 May 2014. Two days later the local sent their written demand to management as to begin collective bargaining towards establishing a collective agreement.

However, instead of respecting international standards and national Korean labour legislation, local management employed delaying tactics and hired a union-busting law firm. Now, as management refuses to attend bargaining meetings, international support is required.

In today’s support letter to KCTF, IndustriALL general secretary Jyrki Raina wrote:

I am shocked and angered to hear of the reaction of the plant level management and will be taking up my concern with the top management of Akzo Nobel.

This bad corporate behaviour is in breach of numerous important international labour standards as well as the national Korean labour law. It is unacceptable.

The main concerns for employees at Akzo Nobel Korea, until being denied their fundamental right to bargain collectively, were: wages, working hours, retirement age, noise levels, industrial disease.

Union requests for meetings were ignored for 12 May, 28 May, 3 June and 13 June. Finally management attended a meeting with the new KCTF local on 23 June, but management showed zero commitment to bargain in good faith with the union. The notorious union busting attorneys were sent to represent the company in the next bargaining meeting on 8 August.

Additionally, the management has blocked the local union from installing a union notice board inside the factory, and tried to prohibit the local union leaders from wearing their union name tags. While several months have passed since the union demanded a sincere negotiation, the management is still failing to show any sincere commitment to bargain in good faith with the union.

Kimberly Clark Workers in Turkey End 43-day Strike with Gains

The settlement has been reached after two particularly major demands of the strikers were accepted by the local management. With the new collective agreement, notice periods have been substantially increased which Tümka-Is considers a remarkable step forward towards job security. The union members have also gained high wage increases. Particular regulations have been made for lower-wage earners which has brought more equality in wage scales.

Kimberly Clark management has also accepted to re-instate five dismissed workers whose employment contracts were terminated during the strike as they were claimed to insult strike-breakers via social media, particularly on Facebook. According to the deal, if the dismissed workers do not want to return back to their job, they are entitled to receive all their payments on the basis of the increases provided with the new agreement.

“We have had difficult days during this period, but always believed we would be successful to get our demands” said Ergun Tavşanoğlu, President of Tümka-İş.

My union and all strikers are thankful to IndustriALL Global Union and United Steelworkers for the support and solidarity in reaching this agreement.

IndustriALL Assistant General Secretary Kemal Özkan commented: “This is a real victory, the result of courageous, unrelenting and determined struggle done by Tümka-İş and its members”.

Unpaid garment workers on hunger strike

More than 1,600 workers at garment manufacturer Tuba Group have been on a hunger strike since 28 July because they have not been paid for three months. They are demanding payment of their salaries, three months worth of overtime, as well as their Eid festival bonuses.
 
The workers, who produced garments for the International Football Federation (Fifa), today announced that if outstanding payments are not made by 7 August, they would call on garment workers across the country to strike on 10 August.
 
Monika Kemperle, assistant general secretary of IndustriALL Global Union, calls for immediate payment of outstanding wages and bonuses.
“The women and men who toil in the garment industry in Bangladesh are our members and we will fight for them. They are the backbone of a very profitable industry which can’t afford to treat people like this.”
 
The managing director of the Tuba group, Delwar Hossain, had been in jail since February 2014 for his role in the Tazreen tragedy, a factory fire claiming 112 lives and injuring more than 200 people. However, in a move by the High Court he was released on bail on 5 August.
 
The workers on hunger strike have been camping out in one of the factories. To date nearly 100 have fallen ill as a result, and around 20 people have been admitted to hospital.
 
This morning, 6 August, they woke up to find the entrances locked. The workers were confined for six hours before the gates were opened by the police.
 
Police then entered the building and ousted labour leaders and activists who had joined the workers in a show of solidarity. At least 20 people were injured in the raid and ten were taken to the police station. All but one was later released.
 
Authorities have stopped the supply of food and saline to the workers who are continuing their fast, and police have restricted the movement of media inside the factory.
 
Monika Kemperle says:

The Tuba Group, the BGMEA and the brands must ensure that all outstanding payments are made immediately, before the human cost is too high.

Gaza: mark your commitment to peace on 7 August

Schools, hospitals and the only power station have been bombed, drawing heavy condemnation from the United Nations, several of whose personnel have also lost their lives. The targeting of civilians is against international law and the UN has called for accountability and justice.

The only solution is a permanent cease-fire with the intervention of the international community to force the parties to the table to conclude a negotiated settlement that ends the blockade of Gaza and the occupation of Palestine. The people of Israel and the people of Palestine will only be assured of a peaceful and secure future with a two-state solution, where all people can live in peace and security and build a future for themselves and their children.

What you can do:

Beginning on 7 August you can support the ITUC campaign by the following actions:

Lobby your government (via face-to-face visits, telephone calls and social media messages) to intervene and support a five point plan for peace including:

A permanent cease-fire;
Humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza;
The immediate suspension of all transfers of weapons, munitions and other military equipment and technology being used against civilians;
An end of the blockade of Gaza;
A negotiated settlement to bring about a two-state solution with the legitimacy of international law.

On Thursday 7 August, send a message on Twitter to the @UN and your national government to support peace.

We @ (Your union name) support peace & democracy everywhere. @UN (@your national government or politician) act now for #gaza.

If you are not on Twitter, you can post a message on your Facebook page.

The ITUC is calling on affiliates and trade union members to make a commitment to peace and send a postcard to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to show that he has our support to deliver peace.

To take part in the ITUC postcard campaign, go to the website www.bypost.com/peacelikemine and use a PC or mobile device to send a real postcard which will be delivered to the UN Secretary-General in New York with your personal message and photo.  

The photo can show your personal experience of peace, and you can send a message about what you want for the people of Palestine and Israel and call on the UN Secretary-General to protect the people of Gaza and deliver a permanent peace. This website www.bypost.com/peacelikemine will go live Thursday August 7th.

Make urgent financial contributions to the International Transport Workers’ Federation’s (ITF) humanitarian relief initiative for Gaza, at www.itfgazafund.org

Hankook continues to violate union rights in Hungary

The firing of the local union president became the last violation in a series of totally unusual and extraordinary examples of the bad industrial relations practice for years exercised by the Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd. management.

On 4 August 400 activists representing over 60 Hungarian trade unions joined together in front of the company premises in a major protest against outrageous action engaged by Hankook.

The IndustriALL Global Union's Hungarian affiliate Federation of the Chemical, Energy and General Workers’ Union (VDSZ) outraged by the injustice from Hankook Tire has called for a joint protest culminated with a spectacular demonstration of solidarity from different national unions in front of the gate entry of the company and messages of support from abroad.

In his letter to Hankook Tire Company Limited Director and CEO, IndustriALL general secretary Jyrki Raina, said:  “I urge you to use your influence over the local management of Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd. to put an end to violations of trade union rights, and most particularly to stop harassing and firing local union leaders. It is imperative that Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd. reinstate, without delay, the unlawfully fired local union president, and sit down with VDSZ to achieve a just agreement and restore fair labour relations in the company.”

The IndustriALL also conveyed a message of solidarity to the VDSZ President Tamas Szekely and union members, in which Jyrki Raina said that "IndustriALL Global Union stands firm in solidarity with VDSZ in their struggle to achieve a just solution to this flagrant violation of workers’ rights".

"IndustriALL Global Union is prepared to further assist you to ensure that the management at Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd. comes to the negotiating table and acts in full compliance with national labor law and international core labor standards," further added Raina.

Numsa settles engineering strike

The settlement provide a 10 per cent wage increase every year for lowest paid members in the sector and 8 per cent increase for the highest paid for the next three years. Other gains were time-off for shop stewards to attend to union and industry matters; the establishment of an industry short-time fund which will be used to compensate workers when they are on short time and training opportunities for workers.

It was also agreed that workers employed by labour brokers shall be entitled to all the terms and conditions of employment as contained in the Main Agreement. The bargaining council has undertaken to employ labour broker compliance officers who will act on complaints of abuse and non-compliance. All parties to the agreement also committed to discourage and minimize the use of temporary employment services in the industry.

 “NUMSA wishes to thank all our allies and friends across the world for supporting us during this long month. The union is more united and growing,” said Numsa International Officer, Skhumbuzo Phakathi.

Chirico ends hunger strike but the fight goes on

Jorge Almeida, IndustriALL Global Union Regional Secretary, made an urgent trip to Paraguay on 1-2 August to express solidarity with Hugo González Chirico, who had been on hunger strike for 80 days. Almeida urged Chirico to not endanger his health further and to use other forms of struggle. He noted the deterioration in Chirico’s health and persuaded him to work together in other ways to find solutions to union demands. In those last few hours, Chirico reflected on the option of ending his hunger strike, in the knowledge he would have the continuing support of IndustriALL Global Union and the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas (TUCA). Víctor Báez, TUCA general secretary also visited the union office in front of the company’s offices in the town of Villa Hayes to convey  his support and to try and convince Chirico to end his hunger strike.

The TUCA and IndustriALL are united in their support for the struggle of the ACEPAR workers and have decided to internationalize the struggle in their efforts to persuade the company to return the 33% of shares that belong to the workers and reinstate the workers dismissed in 2010, all members of SITRAC, the union of workers at ACEPAR and affiliated to FETRAMPAR,  a union federation affiliated to IndustriALL.

Chirico began his hunger strike on 22 May in defence of the rights of ACEPAR workers and in repudiation of the government, which was supporting the company’s violation of human and labour rights.